The present invention relates to a structure of weatherstrip used for sealing a passenger compartment of a vehicle. Such weatherstrips are attached to opening edges of vehicle bodies.
A Japanese Patent Application First Publication (Tokkai) Sho 59-106320 exemplifies such structures for weatherstrips applicable to such vehicles of sash-less door type.
In the above-identified Japanese Patent Application First Publication, a retainer is mounted on an opening edge of a vehicle body, e.g., a door opening portion thereof. A weatherstrip is partially fitted to the retainer. The weatherstrip includes a base portion disposed within the retainer, a supporting pole portion integrally and vertically extended from the base portion, and a hollow lip portion extended between a lower end of the supporting pole portion and one end of the base portion which is located outside of the passenger compartment. When a door glass is moved upward to close the passenger compartment, the hollow lip portion is brought in close contact with an upper edge of the door glass so that the sealing between the inside and outside of the passenger compartment can be achieved.
However, since in the structure of the weatherstrip the hollow lip portion and upper edge of the door glass are closely contacted with each other only through a reaction force of the hollow lip portion, the weatherstrip does not always achieve the sealing reaction force. In addition, since the door glass upper edge is linearly contacted with the hollow lip, water may invade the inside of the passenger compartment even when vehicle door windows are closed. To cope with such unfavorable structures, a stay in substantially a letter-L shaped cross section, one end thereof being fixed to the base portion and the other end thereof being fixed to an inner side surface of the hollow lip portion, is formed. The stay supports the hollow lip portion and serves to increase the sealing reaction force of the hollow lip portion.
However, when the above-described structure having the stay in the hollow lip portion is applicable to the vehicle of the sash-less door type, some drawbacks occur. That is to say, when the vehicle door is closed with the door glass moved downward and then the door glass is moved upward to close the passenger compartment, the upper side edge of the door glass is approximately contacted with a lowest end of the hollow lip portion. Then, the upper side edge thereof is further moved upward and displaced toward the outside of the passenger compartment, with the hollow lip portion deformed and flexed toward the inner hollow part of the hollow lip portion.
At this time, since one end of the stay is fixed to an intermediate edge of the hollow lip portion, the further upward movement of the door glass is blocked before the door glass completely reaches its uppermost position. Consequently, no face-to-face contact state between the door glass and hollow lip portion can be achieved but only the upper side edge of the door glass is brought in contact with the hollow lip portion. Therefore, water may similarly invade the passenger compartment since a water-tight sealing characteristic cannot sufficiently be achieved.